. >> if someone had told me manti te'o's girlfriend was a stanford grad i would say absolutely not. how would i not know anything about this. tragic car accident, leukemia, i would have wanted to write an article about that because it would be a great story. >> reporter: and yet another strange twist, our sister station in los angeles is reporting that there could be a connection to te'o's friend in palm dale and the friend may be implicated in the hoax. and just when you thought the story couldn't get anymore bizarre, someone claiming to be the girlfriend started sending tweets last night, saying that te'o would address questions about their relationship today. notre dame has said te'o was the victim of the hoax. smith bennett and others aren't so sure. >> as much as i believe this happens to people all the time, because i've seen it on tv, i don't think the general public will believe that and i think for the most part they'll rip him, which is kind of fair. >> reporter: and te'o has released a written statement that reads, quote, to realize that i was the victim of what was appar